{"id":3720,"date":"2019-02-11T10:34:41","date_gmt":"2019-02-11T20:34:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uhphawaii.org\/?p=3720"},"modified":"2023-08-01T12:27:08","modified_gmt":"2023-08-01T22:27:08","slug":"uhp-staff-feature-dr-komal-soin-and-the-art-of-a-life-in-balance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uhphawaii.org\/index.php\/uhp-staff-feature-dr-komal-soin-and-the-art-of-a-life-in-balance\/","title":{"rendered":"#WeAreUHP: Dr. Komal Soin and the Art of a Life in Balance"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"3720\" class=\"elementor elementor-3720\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-5a825268 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"5a825268\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-3b800770\" data-id=\"3b800770\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6f2d2452 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"6f2d2452\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-large\">#WeAreUHP: Dr. Komal Soin and the Art of a Life in Balance<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-34e6913e elementor-align-center elementor-widget elementor-widget-post-info\" data-id=\"34e6913e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"post-info.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul class=\"elementor-inline-items elementor-icon-list-items elementor-post-info\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"elementor-icon-list-item elementor-repeater-item-46f67bb elementor-inline-item\" itemprop=\"author\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/uhphawaii.org\/author\/mkotrodimos1\/\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-icon-list-icon\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<i aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"far fa-user-circle\"><\/i>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-icon-list-text elementor-post-info__item elementor-post-info__item--type-author\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMarybeth Kotrodimos\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t<li class=\"elementor-icon-list-item elementor-repeater-item-a474e5f elementor-inline-item\" itemprop=\"datePublished\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/uhphawaii.org\/index.php\/2019\/02\/11\/\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-icon-list-icon\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<i aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"fas fa-calendar\"><\/i>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-icon-list-text elementor-post-info__item elementor-post-info__item--type-date\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<time>February 11, 2019<\/time>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-52294357 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"52294357\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05414.jpg?fit=800%2C531&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-3715\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05414.jpg?w=3568&amp;ssl=1 3568w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05414.jpg?resize=150%2C100&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05414.jpg?resize=300%2C199&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05414.jpg?resize=768%2C510&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05414.jpg?resize=1024%2C680&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05414.jpg?w=1600&amp;ssl=1 1600w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05414.jpg?w=2400&amp;ssl=1 2400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-5d07c23b elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"5d07c23b\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-18e4b115\" data-id=\"18e4b115\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5beccda7 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"5beccda7\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6f9e3d05 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"6f9e3d05\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>February 8, 2019 &#8212;<\/strong><\/p><p><strong>Written by Marybeth Kotrodimos | Photos by Vina Cristobal<\/strong><\/p><p>How many of us have been engaged in creative pursuits which brought us so much joy in our youth, only to abandon them as we go about the business of growing our careers and our lives?<\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Increasingly, many of us \u2013 doctors perhaps more than many others \u2013 are becoming aware of the importance of maintaining a work\/life balance, of living a life which expands to include different pursuits, of not giving up the joy of exploring interests that excited and motivated us in our youth.<\/span><\/p><p><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-3716\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05415.jpg?resize=800%2C574&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"574\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05415.jpg?w=2810&amp;ssl=1 2810w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05415.jpg?resize=150%2C108&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05415.jpg?resize=300%2C215&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05415.jpg?resize=768%2C551&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05415.jpg?resize=1024%2C734&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05415.jpg?w=1600&amp;ssl=1 1600w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05415.jpg?w=2400&amp;ssl=1 2400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">UHP Family Medicine physician, Dr. Komal Soin, seems to embody an expansive spirit which allows her to engage in both medicine and art, to continue to grow and flourish in both realms.\u00a0 Even her photographs show a wide, colorful range of subjects and interests. Looking at her and her art, you don\u2019t get the sense that she has had to surrender the joys of creative exploration to maintain a successful career in medicine.\u00a0 She radiates joyful energy as she talks about her life as a doctor and an artist.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dr. Soin was a fine arts major as an undergraduate. \u00a0She grew up in a family that made art.\u00a0 It was an important part of her life as a child. When asked about her influences as an artist, she first mentions her artist father and his photographs and paintings. She said he has been her inspiration, that she \u201clooks up to him.\u201d Her mother, whose art is ceramics, has also been an important influence..\u00a0 As a career path, she reached a point where she needed to choose between art and medicine.\u00a0 She chose to become a physician because she could do art while practicing medicine.\u00a0 It seems that she made a very good choice.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">People, color, movement \u2013 these words come up frequently when Dr. Soin talks about her photography.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI really like photographing people,\u201d she said, \u201cwhich you can probably tell from my photographs. I really enjoy talking with people and kind of learning about them. It makes the photograph come out. There\u2019s more emotion in it.\u201d\u00a0 The maternity photos of a couple on a beach are wonderful examples of how emotion flows through the images in her work.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The idea of connection runs through her words as she talks about being an artist.\u00a0\u201cI love meeting people. I think that\u2019s why I love taking photos.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI love learning about different cultures,\u201d she says.\u00a0 Travel, she said, motivates her to take pictures. This is clearly evident when looking at her collection, which contains pictures shot in various locations from around the world, such as Thailand, India, Italy, and the US.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Many of Dr. Soin\u2019s photos seem to be narrative in nature.\u00a0 Those of people (of which there are many) in particular, each seem to tell a story.\u00a0 She also seems to have an eye for the natural world, as well as city scenes.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI like having people in nature,\u201d she says. \u201cIt gives us a sense of perspective.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dr. Soin\u2019s photographs cover such a wide range of subject and of style.\u00a0 She captures movement, particularly in her candid street scenes, like the ones she did of the Black Lives Matter demonstrations in Baltimore, which look like the work of a seasoned photojournalist.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When she hears this, she smiles widely and says, \u201cI would love to be a photojournalist!\u201d\u00a0 But there is no regret in her voice. This is the proclamation of an expansive soul who embraces a variety of paths in her life, and is finding a way to walk them all.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Her pictures of flowers are crisp, clear, and clean, while her photos shot in Venice have an impressionistic, painterly quality.\u00a0 And she does the real work of an artist of any genre by shining a light on the mundane, by showing what is fascinating about things that most people find drab and uninteresting.<br \/><\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For example, in her photo shot in Australia, which is titled \u201cGolden\u201d, the subject is the head of a reptile. Close-up, its scaly face reflects light and color in a way that would probably escape the average eye.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And her range as an artist doesn\u2019t just extend to her varied subjects and styles as a photographer.\u00a0 She also works in ceramics, salsa dances, and paints.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u201cWell, kind of,\u201d she says about the painting \u2013 though when speaking about her paintings, others who&#8217;ve seen them disagree. &#8220;Amazing&#8221; and &#8220;Wow!&#8221; pretty much describe their reaction.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI think art really helps me relate to my patients,\u201d Dr. Soin says.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve connected with patients over them being an artist or musician.\u201d\u00a0 <\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Does being an artist enhance how she relates to her patients as a doctor? \u00a0\u201cI hadn\u2019t really thought of that,\u201d she admits, \u201cbut I think it does.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For most of us who paint or make music or write, it is a challenge to maintain a career outside of our art while continuing to practice our crafts.\u00a0 How does Dr. Soin manage it? How does she find the time and the energy to do both?\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There is little suggestion of a struggle as she answers this question.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI tell my residents, \u2018There is always time for other things,\u2019\u201d she says as she is pressed to reveal her secret to maintaining such balance.\u00a0 \u201cTaking classes,\u201d she says, \u201cgives me time set out in my week where I think, \u2018Ok, this is the time I\u2019m going to make art.\u2019\u201d\u00a0 She even took art classes during her residency. &#8220;Going on hikes, spending time with friends and family, and getting into the water<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">,<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201d<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> also motivate her to take pictures.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI\u2019ve always had the ability to separate work from home, or I try to anyway,\u201d Dr. Soin says. \u201cWork\/life balance is extremely important.\u00a0 I can\u2019t just work. I always need art.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-2806f33b elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"2806f33b\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-48644512\" data-id=\"48644512\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5b58b2bf elementor-widget elementor-widget-button\" data-id=\"5b58b2bf\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"button.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-button-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"elementor-button elementor-button-link elementor-size-sm\" href=\"https:\/\/uhphawaii.org\/index.php\/news-all\/\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-button-content-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-button-text\">&lt;&lt;   &nbsp;Return To News<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>February 8, 2019 &#8212; Dr. Komal Soin grew up with a creative spirit; her father was an artist, her mother was into ceramics, and her whole family loved to travel. When she became a doctor, she still learned how to find that work-life balance in her creative passions and career. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":3715,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"elementor_header_footer","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[38],"class_list":["post-3720","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-department-of-family-medicine"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/uhphawaii.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/DSC05414.jpg?fit=3568%2C2368&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/uhphawaii.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3720","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/uhphawaii.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/uhphawaii.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uhphawaii.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uhphawaii.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3720"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/uhphawaii.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3720\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18486,"href":"https:\/\/uhphawaii.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3720\/revisions\/18486"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uhphawaii.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3715"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/uhphawaii.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3720"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uhphawaii.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3720"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uhphawaii.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3720"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}